NASCAR Leaders Take Radically Different Stand After NFL Snaps Back at Trump Over Anthem

The battle over NFL stars taking a knee during the national anthem has kicked into high gear in recent days after President Donald Trump said that players who refuse to stand during The Star Spangled Banner should be fired.

For instance, NASCAR team owner Richard Childress had some tough words for anyone who might protest the national anthem at a racing event; he told USA Today exactly what he’d do in response.

“Get you a ride on a Greyhound bus when the national anthem is over,” Childress, owner of Richard Childress Racing, said. “I told them anyone who works for me should respect the country we live in. So many people have gave their lives for it. This is America.”

And Childress isn’t alone. Richard Petty, another team owner, echoed these comments — but took it even further.

The back and forth is continuing, with Trump doing anything but quieting down about the issue. He tweeted support for NASCAR on Monday morning, saying he’s proud of the sport as well as “its supporters and fans.”

“They won’t put up with disrespecting our country or our flag,” he wrote. “They said it loud and clear!”

The latest controversy, which led NFL players to take a knee in protest on Sunday, comes after Trump issued some tough comments about players who refuse to observe the national anthem.

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a b**ch off the field right now, out, he’s fired. He’s fired,'” he said. “You know, some owner is going to do that. He’s going to say, ‘That guy that disrespects our flag, he’s fired.’ And that owner, they don’t know it [but] they’ll be the most popular person in this country.”